Around Us 02-22-11

Published 12:00 pm, Tuesday, February 22, 2011

LUBBOCK - A high-speed chase through South Lubbock on Monday following a bank robbery ended with the suspect being taken into custody at gunpoint across the Lynn County line.

Lubbock police chased a silver Mustang through traffic, with speeds reportedly reaching more than 100 mph, just after the 2:20 p.m. armed holdup at Wells Fargo bank, 50th Street and Quaker Avenue.

The suspect, 35-year-old Graciano Quezada, was arrested in a Lynn County field after fleeing his vehicle.

Capt. Greg Stevens said a man holding a pistol walked into the bank and announced the robbery in the building, where there were at least 30 people inside.

After the robber left the bank, somebody from inside went outside and got the vehicle description and tag number as the man was leaving, according to police.

Police detectives spotted a Mustang that matched that description moments after the robbery, said Stevens.

The two detectives, who work in the robbery division, got behind Quezada at a red light and before they could even turn on their lights, Quezada took off.

The detectives started chasing the suspect at 2:24 p.m., following him as he got onto the Loop and then off the Loop. Speeds inside city limits reportedly reached at least 90 mph.

Quezada traveled south on Slide Road toward Lynn County, running red lights as he tried to evade police.

The chase concluded at 2:41 p.m. near New Home, about 18 miles south of Lubbock, when officers got ahead of Quezada and placed spike strips across the roadway, which caused his tires to flatten, Stevens said.

Quezada then tried to flee on foot, running into a nearby field, but police took him into custody at gunpoint.

Quezada was taken to the Lynn County Jail and was released shortly after 5 p.m. to be taken to the Lubbock County Jail. He had not been booked into jail as of Monday night and his charges have not yet been determined. - Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

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LUBBOCK - Neighbors and family say Jermar Mc Kinzie and his girlfriend had a history of arguing, but nothing so serious as the events that woke neighbors early Sunday and ultimately led to McKinzie dying by two police bullets while holding the woman at knifepoint.

Friends described both McKinzie and Zitra Rivera as good people - McKinzie, 25, was playful and not prone to violence, his mother said; Rivera, 20, is a quiet and sweet girl, said Peggy Bible, a neighbor.

But the couple, who'd been together on and off for at least a year, was prone to arguments, neighbors said.

Before the 911 call that led police to the Kenosha Kourt Apartments, 5208 Kenosha Ave., at about 4:30 a.m., family and neighbors say Rivera had thrown some of McKinzie's property outside on the ground.

The argument, laced with profanity, was so loud it woke the neighbors.

McKinzie's family members, who were at the complex Monday, say they just want to know everything that happened.

McKinzie didn't have any violent offenses on his criminal record, but he did have a number of drug charges, according to Lubbock County court records.

On Sunday, Lubbock police released a portion of the 911 call, but the publicly released section didn't include the shooting.

Rivera told the 911 operator McKinzie kicked in her front door, hit her and was trying to get his stuff out of her apartment. The audio contains smacking noises, a man's voice yelling profanities and a woman screaming and crying.

McKinzie is accused of ignoring the officer's verbal commands to drop the knife, prompting the officer to fire two shots from her handgun. Both rounds struck McKinzie in the torso, killing him.

The department on Sunday placed Breazeale on administrative leave which is standard policy in an officer-involved shooting. - Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

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AMARILLO - Kristen Whitney, 17, experienced the heartache of losing a loved one at the hands of a distracted driver.

"We do not need another tragedy like my mom's," said Whitney, a junior at Amarillo High School who was a featured speaker Monday during an evening assembly.

The loss of Cynthia "Cindy" Whitney, a prominent member of Old Tascosa Cycling Club, spurred a grass-roots campaign, "Share the Road Amarillo," to focus attention on improving road safety for motorists, motorcyclists, cyclists, runners and pedestrians.

Whitney's mother died July 17 while riding her bicycle on U.S. Highway 87 near the intersection at Hungate Road. The 54-year-old cyclist was struck by a Ford F-250 pickup. Its driver, state troopers reported, had dropped his cell phone and took his eyes off the road to retrieve it.

The younger Whitney urged a crowd of about 200 students and adults to pledge to avoid distractions while driving, including talking and texting on cell phones.

A goal of Share the Road Amarillo was to launch an educational campaign in area school districts to educate teenagers about the dangers of distractions while driving.

The assembly Monday at Amarillo High School was the organization's second high school program. The event netted 107 pledges from adults and students. The pledges come with green Share the Road! wristbands and window decals for vehicles. - Amarillo Globe-News